Unbelievable
by OldMondlerLover
Summary: A little Mondler parental, one-shot fluff I was inspired to do today. Enjoy!


She heard the familiar sound of the door being closed quietly as morning light fought against the pulled blinds in their bedroom.

Monica popped one eye open to look at the time, though she knew it had to be close to 7 a.m.

It was 7:02 to be exact.

It didn't matter how sound asleep she was, Monica had developed "mom's ear" - a condition that all mothers of infants acquire. She was instantly awake at any little sound in the house, quickly on alert, always listening for what her 4-month-old twins might need.

And it never failed that, on a weekday at 7 a.m., she would hear him leave their bedroom and get ready to fight the traffic from Westchester to Manhattan.

He was always loathe to wake her, knowing she'd probably spent part of the night with the babies, letting him sleep. He'd kiss her temple every morning before he left. Sometimes she'd be awake at that moment and sometimes she was sound asleep, but she would always awaken when the door closed behind him.

Because what came after he shut the door never failed to make Monica smile, if only for a moment.

She listened to the baby monitor as she heard the bedroom door to the nursery open.

She couldn't see him, but she always pictured him gazing lovingly at his sleeping babies before quietly closing their door. Then she would hear him go down the stairs and out the door to start his work day.

Erica and Jack had finally started sleeping through the night just a few weeks ago. And "sleeping though the night" meant they went to bed about 8 p.m. and woke Monica up between 4:30 and 5 a.m., ready for their bottles. She had it down to science now. In a half hour they were changed, fed and back to sleep until about 8 a.m.

How long this sleep pattern would last was anyone's guess, but Monica was enjoying it for as long as she could.

That first morning he'd walked in to the sleeping babies' room to "say goodbye" she'd wanted to stop him - afraid he'd wake them. But she didn't and he never did.

Instead it quickly became her favorite way to start her day.

He'd turned out to be the absolutely amazing father she knew he would be. He'd quickly learned how to take care of them and loved them with a fierce devotion she wasn't even sure she got from him. But somehow, that was OK, because she loved them the same way.

Monica paused, waiting for the nursery door to close before drifting back to sleep for another hour or so.

Today, though, was different.

_"Oh, baby girl," Chandler whispered. "What are you doing wide awake, bright eyes?"_

She heard him move closer to the crib and the muffled sounds told her he was reaching over to pick up his daughter.

Monica sat up in bed, looking at their closed door, and leaned back against the headboard.

_"Ohhh," he sighed heavily then chuckled softly, "look at that smile, oh my…"_

She listened as he sat down in the glider, the soft, gentle creaking noise it made being a dead giveaway.

_"You're supposed to be asleep like your brother," he breathed, his voice crystal clear. "Yes you are…you're not supposed to be smiling at Daddy. Daddy has to go make formula money, baby girl..."_

Monica felt tears sting her eyes as she drew her knees to her chest. She heard Chandler chuckle softly again and she smiled, knowing that Erica was still smiling at him, waving her little fists in the air.

It was very clear to everyone who had spent any time with the Bings in the last couple months that Erica was unquestionably a Daddy's Girl - and Monica was perfectly fine with that.

She listened as Chandler rocked their daughter another minute or two.

Then she heard his breath hitch, and in the next moment she knew she would never get back to sleep, her racing heart and happy tears would keep her awake.

_"Oh, Erica," he whispered hoarsely, the love and tears plain in his voice. "Daddy never knew how much he'd love a little girl. I just never knew…I never knew…"_

As she listened she heard her husband kiss his daughter and sniff back his tears.

And she felt like her heart was going to explode.

It was quiet again, as the only sound was the glider going back and forth.

_"Now, I love your brother, too," Chandler eventually said softly, his voice sounding more composed now. "So don't go getting any ideas that you alone can wrap me around your little finger…"_

Erica made a little squeak.

_"Shhh…shhh," Chandler whispered. "Yes, yes I know, there's Mommy, too, I know, I didn't forget her."_

Monica smiled as she wiped her eyes.

_"Ah…" he sighed, as she heard him stand up and Erica gurgling even more. "Who am I kidding, huh, baby girl? Good thing I have 10 fingers, huh?"_

Monica listened, knowing full well that Chandler was going to try to put her back down without any success. Her day was going to start early today.

Monica stood as she listened to Erica's protest as Chandler tried to put her back in her crib. She quietly walked out of their bedroom and down the hall over to the nursery. The door was only opened a crack and she peered in, a new batch of tears pooling in her eyes.

She could see Chandler, in his suit and tie, burp cloth thrown over his shoulder as he stood swaying, his eyes closed, slowly rocking Erica back and forth on his shoulder.

She caught a glimpse of Jack in his crib and he was, indeed, fast asleep.

Monica watched her little family. The three people she loved most in the world in one room and it was almost too much.

She felt so overwhelmed she couldn't even move.

Miraculously, in a couple minutes, Erica's eyes drifted shut and Chandler slowly placed her back in her crib without so much as a whimper.

Then he did a mini-version of his happy dance.

Monica tried not to giggle as she stepped back into the dark hall toward their bedroom again.

She watched in silence as Chandler slowly backed out of the nursery and softly closed the door. He picked up the briefcase he'd left out in the hall and turned toward the staircase.

"I love you," she said, just loud enough for him to hear, her words catching in her throat. He was at the top of the stairs when he turned, a little startled to see her awake, standing in the shadows at the dark end of the hall.

"I love you so much it is unbelievable."

He smiled, put down his briefcase and walked over to her.

His eyes were still misty from the tears he'd just shed over his daughter.

"I tried to be quiet," he said as he placed one hand on her hip and the other wiped a tear from her cheek. "She went back to sleep."

"I know."

"I didn't mean to wake you…"

She shook her head.

"I'm so glad I woke up," she said, with a smile, reaching up to give him a soft kiss.

He kissed her forehead then looked into her eyes.

"I love you so much it is unbelievable," he whispered.

They both sighed at the same time.

"I have to get to work," he said reluctantly releasing his hold on her.

"Gotta make that formula money," she grinned.

He widened his eyes in surprise and she winked at him.

Chandler gave her a soft smile.

"Take care of my babies," he said quietly. "All three of you."

"I will," she kissed him again. "I'll see you when you get home."

"As soon as possible," he kissed her on the cheek and with one last smile made his way down the stairs and out the door.

Monica leaned back on the wall in the hall, thinking about the moment that had just played out. It was a moment she never even once imagined in all those years she'd dreamed about getting married and having children.

Her eyes fixed on a photo of the four of them that hung on the opposite wall - the love of her life and the loves of their lives.

And she smiled.

"Unbelievable…" she whispered.

_**NOTE: Ahhh...feels good to do a one-shot again… :)**_


End file.
